Judge orders man to homeless center

Man gets arrested to stay warm, says judge

Posted: 11:00 AM, March 08, 2013Updated: 11:00 AM, March 08, 2013

FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. - A Broward County Circuit Court judge ordered a homeless man who has shown a pattern of going to jail when it's cold outside to spend 30 days at a homeless shelter without drinking alcohol.

Bruce Hodgson, 38, was arrested Monday at a Home Depot in Pompano Beach. He was charged with failure to leave property upon order by owner.

According to an arrest affidavit, the Home Depot store manager told deputies Hodgson appeared intoxicated and was causing a disturbance inside the store, located at 1151 W. Copans Road.

The deputy wrote that Hodgson left, then returned 15 minutes later and approached the deputy and the manager. When he was told to leave or be arrested, Hodgson turned around, placed his hands behind his back, and said, "Go ahead -- arrest me."

"I told you the other day that I thought this time that you were getting arrested because it was cold outside, but in any event, you were going to get three or four days anyway," Hurley told Hodgson Thursday.

Hurley said Hodgson has been arrested 28 times in the last six and a half years.

After pleading guilty, Hurley gave him time served with a few conditions.

"Bruce, can we get you to the homeless shelter? Would you go if I can get you over there?" asked Hurley.

"Yeah, I will try to get over there," replied Hodgson.

"No, Bruce, you are not going to try to get over there," said Hurley. "If I can get you a ride over there, would you actually get in the car and would you go over there and stay there if we got you in there?"

"Yes, I would stay there," said Hodgson.

As a condition of his release, Hodgson must spent 30 days in the Broward Outreach Center and abstain from alcohol.

When Hurley found out the shelter wouldn't have a bed available until Monday, he called and got Hodgson a bed at the shelter.

A Broward Sheriff's Office deputy is scheduled to drive Hodgson from jail to the shelter Friday morning.

The Broward Sheriff's Office said the main jail had 1,316 inmates Wednesday, or was at 85.3 percent capacity. It costs $116 a day to house an inmate in the Broward County Jail.

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